7-18-12 - Senator Giessel Once Again Sets an Example of Leadership and Initiative for All Elected Officials

Calgary Herald by Dina O'Meara. Exports to the United States have been falling steadily since 2008 and the pain will intensify by almost half a billion cubic feet per day in November when two major pipeline expansions breach the border to bring the U.S. shale gas to storage hubs in Ontario.

WASHINGTON, D.C., July 18, 2012 - The non-partisan Congressional Research Service this week released a new report comparing President Obama's offshore drilling lease plan for 2012-2017 with previous plans offered over the last 30 years by prior Administrations. As the chart shows, the 15 lease sales in President Obama's new plan represent thelowest number of lease sales ever offered in a plan since the process began in 1980.

An Enviable Record

(You read it here first)

Alaska State Senator Cathy Giessel (NGP Photo) sent the following letter to Secretary Clinton yesterday in support of the Keystone XL Pipeline. Giessel has provided oral and/or written testimony to federal officials on virtually every energy policy issue affecting Alaska (and some,like this, that indirectly affect Alaska), since she was elected--and even long before her election. Kudos to this remarkably dedicated state senator. One also notes the continuing and intimately interlocking relationships among Alaskan, Canadian and Lower 48 interests. We truly are, "all in this together". -dh

RE: Comments on Presidential Permit Application for Keystone XL

Dear Secretary Clinton:

I am writing in support of TransCanada’s proposed Keystone XL pipeline. I urge the U.S. Department of State to expeditiously approve the Presidential Permit necessary for this project to move forward and begin building a prosperous future for all Americans.

The Keystone XL has undergone rigorous environmental assessment. The three-year National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review found that the project would not pose any significant impact to the environment. I urge you to use the data that has already been gathered and examine only those new issues that are associated with the Nebraska re-route.

The Keystone XL pipeline project’s positive contributions to U.S. energy security and the U.S. economy are estimated to be valued at over $20 billion. The construction of the $7 billion Keystone XL pipeline project will generate more than 13,000 jobs. Throughout the life of the pipeline over 20,000 high-wage manufacturing and construction jobs will be created across the U.S., stimulating significant economic activity. During construction, states along the pipeline route are expected to receive $585 million in state and local taxes and an additional $5.2 billion in property taxes over the operating life of the pipeline.

Access to a stable and affordable petroleum supply is crucial to our national security and economic future. Supporting domestic production and oil imports from our ally Canada helps to ensure a consistent energy supply that can be delivered over an extended period.

The construction of the Keystone XL pipeline is critical to improving American energy security and boosting our economy. I respectfully request that the Department of State expeditiously review the new route through Nebraska, using the existing environment analysis from the project’s Final Environmental Impact Statement in its NEPA review. Americans will greatly benefit from the Presidential Permit that will allow TransCanada to begin building this pipeline.

I support the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline and believe that it is in the best interest of all Americans.

America is in the middle of an energy revolution — but to the consternation of many, it’s not the one they dreamed about. Yes, we must continue to search for ways to reduce our oil consumption, but we also should be looking to produce more energy that is more affordable for consumers and less harmful to the environment. Simultaneously, new breakthroughs in oil and natural-gas technology, and development on private and state lands are rewriting the energy outlook for the United States.

By all accounts, future gasoline prices should rise as oils become heavier and harder to handle. The more waste carbon and the less hydrogen fuel in new oils, the higher the cost to turn them into gasoline. But when it comes to predicting prices at the pump, all bets are off.

Gas prices are slowly rising across the United States after months of a steadily declining, but who is really profiting off your gasoline purchases. It might surprise you, but it isn’t the gas station. An analysis of gas prices by Sageworks, a financial analysis company, shows that gas stations aren’t bringing in huge profit margins — or not the profits that consumers think.

Nebraska environmental regulators say a new proposed corridor for the Keystone XL pipeline still crosses areas of fragile, sandy soil, even though it avoids what they defined as the Sandhills. A report released Tuesday says the 2,000-foot-wide corridor runs through land that could erode, and passes near unconfined aquifers that supply drinking water to residents and livestock. Officials say most of the aquifers lie near the town of Stuart.

No damage has been found on a Shell Oil drilling ship that lost its mooring in Alaska’s Dutch Harbor, the Coast Guard said Tuesday. Coast Guard Lt. Jim Fothergill said video captured by divers shows no damage or signs of grounding by the 571-foot Noble Discoverer, which slipped its anchorage Saturday, drifting extremely close to shore. Two Coast Guard investigators were aboard the ship Monday during the divers’ inspection and witnessed the live video feed, Fothergill said.

Nebraska environmental regulators say a new proposed corridor for the Keystone XL pipeline still crosses areas of fragile, sandy soil, even though it avoids what they defined as the Sandhills.A report released Tuesday says the 2,000-foot-wide corridor runs through land that could erode, and passes near unconfined aquifers that supply drinking water to residents and livestock. Officials say most of the aquifers lie near the town of Stuart.Regulators say pipeline developer TransCanada should carefully consider a route that avoids the aquifers, and document what safety precautions the company takes if doing so is not possible.

The U.S. is at risk of relying too much on natural gas as transportation, manufacturing and electric-power industries vie for the cheap fuel, top executives of three power utilities said. While greater use of gas instead of coal for generation cuts air pollution and carbon-dioxide emissions linked to climate change, the executives said the U.S. needed a diverse fuel mix to hedge against cost increases in any one source. “Having one focus is never good, just like a portfolio having one stock,” Michael Yackira, chief executive officer of Las Vegas-based NV Energy Inc. (NVE), said today at a Bloomberg Government breakfast in Washington.

Consumer prices were unchanged in June, held down by cheaper gas. Outside the volatile food and energy categories, inflation was mild. The Labor Department said Tuesday that gas prices fell in June by a seasonally adjusted 2 percent, the third straight decline. Food prices edged up 0.2 percent after a flat reading in May. Outside the volatile food and energy categories, so-called “core” prices rose 0.2 percent last month. It was the fourth straight increase of that size.